*B   37 


NATIONAL  BANK  OF  COMMERCE 
IN  NEW  YORK 


.;.,«- -~ai;-; 
!*i.|sp=DT'«! 


»J 


1921 


GIFT   OF 


NATIONAL  BANK  OF  COMMERCE 
IN  NEW  YORK 


JAMES  S.  ALEXANDER 
President 


*9    ^* 


NATIONAL  BANK  OF  COMMERCE 
IN  NEW  YORK 


A  GREAT 
AMERICAN 

BANK 


"  I  ^  s  ^          °*  •»"  £  *•  ; »  I    » 

i    *»*      f  i-v   p   *o.*;' 

l-,*£."*»i  O  »'  *"         \ 


Copyright  ig2i 

'National  Bank  of  Commerce 

in  Nen;  York 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

FOREWORD 9 

A   GREAT  AMERICAN   BANK 11 

BANKING  A  PUBLIC  TRUST 16 

INTERNATIONAL  POSITION  OF  NEW  YORK 19 

COOPERATION  WITH   INTERIOR  BANKS 23 

THE  PERSONAL  RELATION  IN  BANKING 24 

THE  EMPLOYES  27 

FINANCING  DOMESTIC  BUSINESS 30 

INTERNATIONAL  CONNECTIONS 32 

FINANCING   FOREIGN   TRADE 34 

ESTABLISHING   RELATIONS 34 

DOMESTIC  CREDIT  RATINGS 35 

FOREIGN  CREDIT  INFORMATION 37 

A  SOURCE  OF  BUSINESS  INFORMATION 38 

COMMERCIAL  RESEARCH  IN  RELATION  TO  MODERN  BUSINESS 39 

FOREIGN  TRADE  INFORMATION 41 

PUBLICATIONS 43 

INVESTMENTS  AND  THE  CARE  OF  SECURITIES 43 

INVESTMENT  ADVICE    44 

FISCAL  AGENT 45 

COUPONS 46 

EQUIPMENT  AND  RESOURCES 47 


507SG2 


FOREWORD 


National  Bank  of  Com- 
merce  in  New  York  affords 
to  its  customers  the  strength  and 
the  prestige  of  its  great  financial 
resources.  It  offers  also  its 
varied  and  highly  specialized 
personal  service.  The  object  of 
this  book  is  to  make  the  friends 
of  the  bank  better  acquainted 
with  its  business,  and  to  invite 
their  full  employment  of  its 
facilities. 


JAMES  S.  ALEXANDER 

President 


SAMUEL  WARD 
First  President— 1839 


NATIONAL  BANK  OF  COMMERCE 

IN  NEW  YORK 

A  Great  American  Bank 

TN  choosing  a  banking  connection,  the  modern 
business  man  reckons  with  many  factors  other 
than  the  availability  of  credits  to  facilitate  the 
transaction  of  his  business.  He  assumes  that 
the  institution  he  is  to  look  to  for  cooperation 
in  working  out  year  after  year  the  most  vital 
and  intimate  elements  of  his  business  life  will 
be  of  unquestioned  soundness  from  a  banking 
standpoint  and  of  outstanding  financial  strength; 
but  he  recognizes  that  the  banking  relation  is  a 
personal  relation;  that  his  bank  will  be  his 
counsellor  and  friend  in  all  matters  that  have 
to  do  with  the  broader  relationships  of  his 
enterprise.  Naturally,  therefore,  he  wishes  an 
insight  into  the  bank's  policy,  or  what  may  be 
called  its  personality.  This  is  determined  in 
the  case  of  a  bank  largely  as  it  is  in  the  case  of 
an  individual — by  the  institution's  history,  loca- 
tion, character  of  business  and  accumulated 
store  of  experience.  All  this  is  further  influenced 


lye   .C.U  i  c/ 


G  r  e  a  IT 


American 


Bank 


by  the  type  of  officer  chosen  to  interpret   the 
bank  and  its  service  to  the  customer. 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  has  been  from  the  outset  essentially  a 
commercial  bank.  Its  purpose  has  been  the 
financing  of  the  current  undertakings  of  manu- 
facturers and  merchants.  Its  viewpoint  has 
been  determined  by  their  needs,  and  its  course 
has  been  shaped  to  give  them  service.  The 
bank  was  established  in  1839,  during  the  period 
of  severe  business  depression  which  followed 
the  panic  of  1837.  The  Federal  charter  of  the 
Bank  of  the  United  States  had  expired  a  year 
before  the  panic,  and  the  need  in  New  York  for 
an  institution  of  large  capital  was  felt  by  many 
business  men  of  the  city.  The  Articles  of  Asso- 
ciation were  drawn  up  by  the  famous  lawyer, 
Chancellor  James  Kent,  who  became  a  member 
of  the  board.  Of  the  eighteen  original  asso- 
ciates, twelve  were  promi- 
nent merchants. 


The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in 
New  York  was  established  in  1839  on 
the  eve  of  the  clipper  ship  era.  The 
bank  ivas  an  important  factor  in  the 
subsequent  development  of  American 
commerce. 


Page  Twelve 


Great  American  Bank 


The  names  of  these  men  are  closely  linked 
with  American  commerce  of  the  period,  names 
such  as  Gracie,  Minturn,  Carow,  Donaldson, 
Sturges,  Whitney,  Stevens  and  Russell.  It  was 
the  eve  of  the  clipper  ship  era,  and  the  in- 
dustry and  vision  of  all  these  men  helped  to  ex- 
tend American  commerce  to  all  quarters  of  the 
globe.  The  first  president  of  the  bank  was  Samuel 
Ward  of  Rhode  Island,  of  the  famous  firm  of 
merchant  bankers,  Prime,  Ward  and  King.  It 
was  his  daughter,  Julia  Ward  Howe,  who  wrote 
"The  Battle  Hymn  of  the  Republic." 

The  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York  opened 
for  business  on  April  3,  1839,  in  quarters  in  the 
Merchants  Exchange  Building,  46  Wall  Street. 
By  1842  these  quarters  were  outgrown,  so  the 
bank  leased  half  of  the  building  of  the  Bank  of 
the  State  of  New  York  in  Wall  Street,  next  to 
the  Subtreasury  Building,  located  at  Nassau 
and  Wall  Streets,  and  two  years  later  bought 
the  property.  In  1854  the  Federal  Government 
bought  the  land  on  which  that  building  stood. 
The  Bank  of  Commerce  obtained  in  1855  a  more 
adequate  site  at  the  corner  of  Nassau  and  Cedar 
Streets,  which  is  part  of  its  present  location.  It 
was  on  this  spot  that  the  home  of  Aaron  Burr 
once  stood.  On  its  new  site  the  bank  erected 


Page  Thirteen 


Great 


American 


Bank 


a  four-story  marble  building,  then  one  of  the 
finest  in  the  city. 

In    1894,  additional  land  was  bought   at  33 
Nassau  Street  adjoining,  and   the  erection  of  a 
new   building,  the  present    home  of  the  bank, 
was  begun.  This  was  completed  in  1897.  In  1919 
further    adjoining    property 
on  the  north  was  purchased, 
so  that   the  institu- 
tion   now   owns   the 
entire     frontage    on 
the  west  side  of 
Nassau    Street 
between  Cedar 
Street     and 
Liberty 
Street,  and 
its    future 
growth    is 
adequately 
provi  ded 
for. 


Bank  of  Commerce 
building  at  Cedar  and 
Nassau  Streets  in 
Civil  War  days.  Here 
was  formerly  located 
the  home  of  Aaron 
Burr. 


Page  Fourteen 


Great 


A  m  e  r  i  c  a  n 


Bank 


The  present  site  is  diagonally  opposite  the 
block  recently  secured  by  the  Federal  Reserve 
Bank  of  New  York  for  the  erection  of  its  new 
banking  house,  which  will  be  one  of  the  promi- 
nent landmarks  of  the  financial  section  of  the 
future. 

The  original  capital  of  the  Bank  of  Commerce 
was  $5,000,000,  but  the  full  amount  was  not 
paid  in  until  December,  1852.  In  1856  the 
capital  was  increased  to  $10,000,000.  In  1865 
the  bank  entered  the  National  Banking  System. 
In  1900  the  National  Union  Bank  was  merged 
with  the  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  and  in  1903  the  Western  National  Bank 
was  merged  with  it.  By  these  consolidations, 
the  capital  of  the  National  Bank  of  Commerce 
in  New  York  was  increased  to  the  present  figure 
of  $25,000,000.  The  growth  of  the  bank's  re- 
sources is  summarized  below: 


Date 

Capital 
Paid  in 

Surplus  and 
Undivided 
Profits 

Loans, 
Discounts 
and 
Investments 

Total 
Deposits 

May  13,  1839 
May    8,1865 
June  29,  1900 
June  30,  1910 
June  30,  1920 
June  30,  1921 

$1,199,280 
10,000,000 
10,000,000 
25,000,000 
25,000,000 
25,000,000 

$       4,211 
2,836,563 
7,029,293 
15,893,079 
31,533,152 
34,494,816 

$  1,270,505 
15,925,186 
60,959,379 
138,849,979 
329,868,021 
324,510,964 

$     831,392 
12,615,071 
65,423,628 
182,854,933 
370,448,229 
386,379,208 

Page  Fifteen 


Great  American  Bank 


Banking  a  Public  Trust 

From  its  beginning,  the  Bank  of  Commerce 
recognized  that  the  business  of  banking  is  to  a 
substantial  degree  a  public  service  and  that  its 
fulfillment  demands  close  cooperation  with  the 
Federal  Government.  In  May,  1841,  Treasury 
notes  to  the  then  relatively  large  amount  of 
$500,000  were  purchased  and  placed  to  the 
credit  of  the  disbursing  officers  of  the  War 
Department.  In  August  of  the  same  year,  the 
bank  subscribed  to  $1,000,000  of  United  States 
stock  at  par,  and  was  made  the  sole  depository 
for  public  moneys  collected  in  New  York. 
During  the  panic  of  1857  the  Bank  of  Com- 
merce took  the  lead  in  endeavoring  to  prevent 
the  suspension  of  specie  payments.  When  re- 
sumption seemed  possible,  it  was  instrumental 
in  calling  a  meeting  of  the  leading  banks  of 
New  York,  and  was  able  to  arrange  with  three 
other  banks  to  resume  payments.  This  cour- 
ageous step  was  shortly  followed  by  the  other 
banks  of  the  country. 

When  the  Clearing  House  Association  was 
organized  in  1853,  the  Bank  of  Commerce  was 
one  of  its  original  members,  and  a  few  years 
later  the  president  of  the  bank,  then  chairman 


Page  Sixteen 


Great  American  Bank 


of  the  Clearing  House  Association,  was  instru- 
mental in  devising  the  Clearing  House  certificate, 
a  remedy  often  resorted  to  in  later  financial 
emergencies. 

During  the  Civil  War  the  Bank  of  Commerce 
was  able  to  perform  a  unique  service.  In 
December,  1860,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
had  asked  for  subscriptions  for  $5,000,000  in 
Treasury  notes,  but  less  than  half  that  sum  had 
been  bid  for,  some  bids  being  as  high  as  36 
per  cent.  It  seemed  likely  that  the  attempt  to 
raise  the  money  would  end  in  failure  when  the 
Bank  of  Commerce  came  forward  and  took 
approximately  $4,500,000  at  12  per  cent.  Dur- 
ing the  early  part  of  1861  the  condition  of  the 
Federal  Treasury  was  desperate.  The  expenses 
of  the  war  amounted  to  approximately  $4,000,- 
000  a  day.  John  A.  Stevens  was  then  president 
of  the  bank,  and  under  his  leadership  a  com- 
mittee of  bankers  was  formed  and  a  bond  issue 
which  met  the  immediate  needs  of  the  situation 
was  floated. 

In  1863  the  National  Bank  Act  was  passed 
and  in  January,  1865,  this  bank  entered  the 
system.  In  connection  with  its  admission  to 
the  system  a  noteworthy  tribute  to  the  patriotic 


Page  Seventeen 


Great  American  Bank 


service  which  the  Bank  of  Commerce  had 
rendered  during  the  war  was  paid  by  Congress 
when  it  passed  a  special  amendment  to  the 
National  Bank  Act,  by  which  the  bank  was 
enabled  to  retain  certain  of  its  charter  provisions 
which  were  of  special  value.  At  this  time,  the 
bank  assumed  its  present  corporate  name, 
National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York. 

In  the  World  War,  the  National  Bank  of 
Commerce  in  New  York  maintained  its  tradi- 
tional standards.  From  the  entry  of  the  United 
States  into  the  struggle  on  April  6,  1917,  to  the 
close  of  1919,  the  bank  on  account  of  itself  and 
its  customers  subscribed  to  the  four  Liberty 
Loans  and  to  the  Victory  Loan  a  total  of  $322,- 
092,000  and  was  allotted  $234,244,300.  During 
the  same  period,  the  bank  bought  $1,224,- 
016,500  of  United  States  certificates  of  indebted- 
ness, while  its  loans  to  customers  against  United 
States  bonds  and  certificates  of  indebtedness  by 
means  of  which  they  were  enabled  to  maintain 
or  expand  their  productive  activities  totaled 
$618,323,469.  The  grand  total  of  the  three  items 
from  the  beginning  of  the  war  to  December  31, 
1919,  was  $2,076,584,269. 


Page  Eighteen 


Great 


A  m  e  r  i  c  a  n 


Bank 


The  International  Position  of  New  York 

In  1839,  when  the  Bank  of  Commerce  opened 
for  business,  the  city  had  only  390,000  inhabi- 
tants, but  it  was  already  the  largest  city  on  the 
American  continent.  Today  it  has  a  population 
of  5,620,000  and  is  the  greatest  port  of  the  world . 
Its  supremacy  has  come  about  through  a  com- 
bination of  factors,  chief  among  which  are  its 
matchless  harbor  and  its  unrivaled  physical  lines 
of  communication  to  the  interior.  In  addition  to 
these  circumstances  of  environment  its  sturdy 
original  stock  has  been  continually  invigorated  by 
additions  to  the  population  from  all  parts  of  the 


The  National  Bank  of 
Commerce  is  located  in 
the  heart  of  New 
York's  great  commer- 
cial and  financial  dis- 
trict. 


Page  Nineteen 


Great  American  Bank 


nation  and  of  the  world,  building  up  a  virile 
composite  citizenship  of  many  and  varied  abilities 
applicable  to  manifold  industries.  The  popula- 
tion of  the  United  States  has  grown  from  17,000,- 
000  in  1839  to  105,000,000  in  1920,  and  with 
its  growth  the  needs  of  the  country  and  the 
products  of  its  industry  have  increased  proper^ 
tionately.  The  trade  of  New  York  both  with 
the  interior  and  with  Europe  has  expanded  with 
the  growth  in  population  of  the  country. 

The  location  of  London  at  the  gates  of  Europe 
has  made  it  the  financial  and  commercial  center 
of  that  continent.  The  merits  which  the  Dutch 
fur  traders  saw  in  the  location  of  a  trading  post 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Hudson  River  are  the 
advantages  which  have  made  New  York  the 
financial  and  commercial  center,  not  only  of 
the  United  States,  but  of  North  America. 

The  war  has  brought  home  to  every  business 
man  the  dependence  of  industry  and  commerce 
upon  adequate  banking  facilities.  Development 
of  the  international  banking  system  is  one  of 
the  greatest  of  modern  accomplishments.  The 
existence  of  this  system  depends  in  equal  meas- 
ure upon  the  small  bank  in  a  small  American 
village  or  in  a  distant  Chinese  city,  and  upon 


Page  Twenty 


Great  American  Bank 


the  greatest  international  banks  in  the  world's 
main  financial  centers.  The  location  of  the 
National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York  at 
the  financial  capital  of  the  country  has  shaped 
its  policy.  Its  business  is  national  and  inter- 
national in  scope.  Its  transactions  are  based 
on  essential  commercial  and  industrial  activities. 
Its  business  is  distributed  throughout  all  the 
major  lines  of  productive  enterprise  of  the 
United  States. 

The  strength  of  the  bank's  position  and  its 
ability  to  render  service  are  increased  by  the 
breadth  of  its  operations.  The  seasonal  varia- 
tions in  the  requirements  of  its  customers  offset 
each  other,  while  its  outlook  on  financial  and 
economic  problems  is  greatly  broadened.  The 
self-interest  of  the  National  Bank  of  Commerce 
in  New  York  is  identical  with  the  business 
welfare  of  the  United  States.  Of  necessity,  its 
policy  is  that  of  economic  statesmanship.  This 
bank  is  an  important  factor  in  the  financing  of 
the  cotton,  tobacco  and  grain  crops,  and  the 
annual  wool  clip.  It  enables  the  importer  of 
raw  rubber,  of  wool  or  of  sugar  to  finance  his 
operations.  It  furnishes  credit  to  the  manu- 
facturer of  textiles,  of  leather,  or  boots  and 


Page  Twenty-one 


The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  building  is  at  Nassau  and  Cedar  Streets.      Through 

the  acquisition  of  an  adjoining  building  the  bank's  frontage  now   extends 

along  the  ivest  side  of  Nassau  from  Cedar  to  Liberty  Streets. 


Great  American  Bank 


shoes,  of  agricultural  implements,  or  industrial 
chemicals,  and  it  renders  similar  service  to  the 
domestic  dealer  or  exporter  of  foodstuffs,  steel, 
electrical  goods  or  naval  stores.  All  of  this 
business  would  be  impossible  without  trans- 
portation facilities,  and  in  this  branch  of  indus- 
try also  the  bank  is  lending  active  financial 
cooperation.  A  picture  of  a  crowded  year's 
business  in  the  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in 
New  York  would  furnish  a  cross-section  of  the 
economic  life  of  the  United  States. 

Cooperation  with  Interior  Banks 

A  large  proportion  of  this  service  is  rendered 
indirectly.  In  a  sense,  the  National  Bank  of 
Commerce  in  New  York  may  be  said  to  be  a 
wholesale  merchant  of  credit.  It  recognizes  the 
unique  service  rendered  by  the  local  banking 
institutions  of  the  United  States,  unsurpassed 
in  any  other  nation,  and  it  believes  without 
reserve  in  the  great  future  of  the  banks  of  every 
town  and  city  in  the  country.  It  is,  therefore, 
its  settled  policy  to  cooperate  rather  than  com- 
pete with  these  institutions.  It  assists  them  in 
the  financing  of  local  enterprise  through  the 
medium  of  loans  made  to  its  bank  correspond- 
ents. It  specializes  in  the  handling  with  them 


Page  Tiventy-thrce 


Great  American  Bank 


of  large  commercial  accounts,  and  of  interna- 
tional business.  It  also  offers  the  most  careful 
service  to  smaller  businesses  which  desire  a 
strong  New  York  banking  connection  in  antici- 
pation of  growth,  or  to  meet  some  special  re- 
quirements of  their  business.  The  bank  helps 
direct  the  stream  of  financial  traffic  at  one  of 
its  main  crossways. 

The  Personal  Relation  in  Banking 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York 
recognizes  that  business  relationships,  to  be 
successful,  must  in  last  analysis  be  between 
man  and  man.  It  also  recognizes  that  the  size 
of  the  modern  business  unit  makes  the  preserva- 
tion of  this  personal  touch  in  business  dealings 
a  matter  of  special  study.  Therefore,  its  officers 
and  employes  have  been  chosen  and  its  entire 
organization  constructed  with  a  view  to  meeting 
this  need. 

James  S.  Alexander,  its  president,  is  eminent 
among  American  bankers.  He  entered  the  serv- 
ice of  the  institution  in  1885,  at  the  age  of 
twenty.  His  record  of  thirty-five  years  of  serv- 
ice with  it  is  the  longest  of  any  of  its  personnel. 
He  worked  through  many  of  its  departments,  per- 
fecting his  knowledge  of  the  technical  operations 


Page  Twenty-lour 


Great  American  Bank 


of  the  business.  He  developed  a  thorough 
understanding  of  the  broader  problems  involved 
in  national  and  international  banking  operations. 
He  is  a  recognized  authority  on  banking  credits. 

Mr.  Alexander's  banking  experience  and  judg- 
ment have  been  largely  drawn  upon  during  the 
war  and  post-war  periods.  He  was  an  active 
member  of  the  Liberty  Loan  Committee  for  the 
New  York  Federal  Reserve  District,  which 
directed  the  flotation  of  nearly  a  third  of  the 
nation's  war  loans.  His  services  in  war  finance 
have  also  won  special  recognition  from  the 
French,  Belgian  and  Italian  governments. 

In  dealing  with  complex  problems  of  post-war 
international  finance  and  trade,  Mr.  Alexander 
has  been  no  less  active,  serving  as  chairman  of 
the  Committee  on  Credit  and  Finance  at  the 
International  Trade  Conference  called  by  the 
Chamber  of  Commerce  of  the  United  States  in 
October,  1919,  and  as  chairman  of  the  Executive 
Committee  of  the  National  Committee  on  Euro- 
pean Finance.  In  addition  to  several  great 
domestic  corporations,  he  is  a  director  of  the 
Federal  Reserve  Bank  of  New  York,  chairman 
of  the  Board  of  the  French  American  Banking 
Corporation,  and  a  director  of  the  Foreign 


Page  Twenty-five 


Great  American  Bank 


Finance  Corporation.  Mr.  Alexander's  experi- 
ence and  judgment  are  of  inestimable  advantage 
to  those  who  are  carrying  the  financial  respon- 
sibilities of  American  business. 

The  other  officers  have  been  drawn  from 
various  parts  of  the  United  States,  hence  they 
are  personally  familiar  with  the  conditions  and 
the  needs  of  the  different  sections  of  the  country. 
They  have  been  selected  for  their  practical 
experience,  not  only  in  banking,  but  in  industry 
and  commerce.  They  are  men  who  have  won 
their  way  from  subordinate  positions  by  their 
own  efforts  and  ability,  and  have  attained  their 
present  positions  of  responsibility  as  a  result  of 
their  proved  capacity  in  previous  undertakings. 

The  administrative  organization  of  the  Na- 
tional Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York  is  such 
as  to  give  its  officers  the  opportunity,  while 
retaining  a  broad  national  viewpoint,  to  become 
specialists,  both  as  to  different  sections  of  the 
country  and  as  to  particular  industrial  and  com- 
mercial groups.  The  bank's  customers  are  thus 
enabled  to  deal  with  officers  personally  familiar 
with  their  districts  and  their  industries.  At  the 
same  time  its  organization  is  kept  flexible 
enough  to  preserve  unity  of  action. 


Page  Twenty-six 


Great  American  Bank 


The  Employes 

One  of  our  customers  remarked  recently  that 
after  he  had  established  relations  with  the 
National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York 
through  its  officers,  he  found  that  the  bank's 
employes  handled  the  details  of  mutual  business 
transactions  with  a  care  and  intelligence  which 
reduced  to  a  minimum  the  amount  of  supervision 
required  either  of  himself  or  of  his  associates. 
This  statement  reflects  the  results  of  the  con- 
sistent policy  of  the  bank,  which  has  been  to 
man  its  departments  with  workers  who  regard 
their  banking  work  as  a  profession  rather  than 
a  mere  employment.  A  corps  of  capable  and 
intelligent  employes  has  been  built  up,  experts 
in  their  respective  lines,  whose  allegiance  is 
expressed  in  more  than  routine  service.  To  them 
the  bank's  fine  record  is  an  inspiration  and  its 
future  an  assurance  of  opportunity.  Although 
the  bank's  friends  may  never  see  or  know  the 
workers,  each  customer  is  to  them  a  definite 
personality,  with  whose  particular  banking  re- 
quirements and  desires  they  are  thoroughly 
familiar,  and  whose  interests  they  are  anxious 
to  serve. 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  recognizes  the  value  of  this  spirit  in  its 


Page  Twenty-seven 


Great  American  Bank 


personnel,  and  fosters  it  in  every  way.  The 
first  and  most  important  way  is  through  fair 
dealing  and  the  payment  of  adequate  compensa- 
tion. In  order  to  keep  its  employes  physically 
fit,  it  provides  good  working  conditions.  Since 
1866,  substantial  dinners  have  been  supplied 
to  employes  in  the  middle  of  the  day.  The 
dining  room  is  in  charge  of  a  trained  dietitian. 
The  services  of  a  physician  and  trained  nurse 
are  constantly  available  in  quarters  fitted  with 
all  needful  appliances.  Recreation  rooms  on  the 
top  floor  of  the  bank  building  have  been  com- 
fortably furnished  and  placed  at  the  employes' 
disposal.  A  retirement  pension  system  and  a 
system  of  life  and  disability  insurance  are  pro- 
vided by  the  bank  for  the  employes,  free  of  cost 
to  them.  The  necessity  for  the  training  of 
employes  along  the  broadest  cultural  lines  is 
recognized  and  the  bank  endeavors  to  make 
available  to  them  the  superior  facilities  of  the 
city's  leading  educational  institutions  by  bearing 
a  share  of  the  cost  of  courses  pursued  there. 
Recognition  of  the  value  of  these  facilities  is 
indicated  by  the  substantial  number  of  em- 
ployes who  take  advantage  of  them. 

The  greater  part  of  the  educational  and  social 
activities  of  employes  is  under  the  direction  of 


Page  Twenty-eight 


Great 


American 


Bank 


the  Commerce  Club,  an  organization  of  the 
employes  themselves,  which  affords  many  ad- 
vantages. A  thrift  department  makes  available 
means  of  saving  and  investment  which  are  not 
only  incentives  to  thrift,  but  which  insure  rates 
of  return  not  elsewhere  available  under  similar 
limitations  of  amount.  By  means  of  frequent 
social  and  business  meetings  and  recreational 
programs,  through  the  publication  of  a  magazine, 
and  through  outdoor  and  indoor  athletic  activi- 
ties the  club  fosters  a  spirit  of  mutual  co- 
operation and  fellowship  throughout  all  depart- 
ments of  the  bank.  To  officers  and  employes 


A  corner  of  the 
banking  room. 


1'age  Twenty-nine 


Great  American  Bank 


alike  the  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  is  much  more  than  a  mere  place  to  earn 
a  living. 

Financing  Domestic  Business 

The  fundamental  service  of  a  commercial 
bank  is  the  financing  of  producers  and  distribu- 
tors of  goods  for  their  current  operations.  This 
is  done  by  means  of  credit,  ultimately  based  on 
gold,  and  constituting  an  order  on  a  portion 
of  the  actual  physical  wealth  of  the  country. 
A  bank  is  able  to  accumulate  a  reservoir  of 
credit,  and  through  the  confidence  which  busi- 
ness men  have  in  the  skill  and  integrity  of  its 
management,  to  direct  it  into  those  channels 
where  it  is  needed  to  facilitate  the  business  of 
the  country.  It  is  thus  possible  to  place  at 
the  service  of  industry  not  merely  the  bank's 
own  financial  resources,  but  also  to  employ  in  a 
similar  manner  for  others  their  resources  not 
otherwise  engaged. 

When  a  business  enterprise  is  about  to  make 
a  New  York  banking  connection,  it  must  be 
assured  that  the  bank  which  it  selects  will  be 
able  to  provide  credit  in  adequate  amounts  at 
any  time,  and  on  fair  terms.  The  capital, 
surplus  and  potential  resources  of  the  National 


I'age  Thirty 


Great  American  Bank 


Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York  are  sufficient 
to  meet  the  requirements  of  large  business 
enterprises. 

The  policy  of  the  bank  has  been  to  maintain 
a  capital  and  surplus  sufficient  to  provide  for 
fluctuations  in  its  business.  It  is  in  no  danger 
of  having  to  contract  the  volume  of  its  accom- 
modations abruptly  or  unseasonably.  Its  re- 
sources are  large  enough  to  meet  the  needs 
of  its  customers;  its  employment  of  them  is  so 
conservative  as  to  insure  to  its  customers  a 
maximum  of  stability  in  credit  accommodations 
at  all  times.  It  is  prepared  to  finance  on  a 
large  scale  domestic  transactions  based  on  pro- 
ductive commercial  enterprises.  It  offers  to 
each  customer  the  form  of  accommodation  best 
suited  to  his  needs,  whether  by  means  of  loans, 
discounts,  or  acceptances.  Its  domestic  busi- 
ness is  distributed  among  all  the  essential  pro- 
ductive enterprises  of  the  country,  and  its 
customers  include  only  those  of  proved  sound- 
ness and  worth.  It  regards  the  character  of  its 
customers,  not  only  as  a  fundamental  element 
in  the  soundness  of  its  own  position,  but  as  a 
principal  evidence  of  the  recognition  of  that 
position  by  the  business  interests  of  the  United 
States. 


Page  Thirty-one 


Great  American  Bank 


International  Connections 

In  foreign  relations  the  National  Bank  of 
Commerce  in  New  York  has  pursued  the  policy 
which  it  has  followed  in  its  domestic  business. 
Through  years  of  cooperative  effort  and  activity, 
it  has  built  up  close  correspondent  relations  with 
the  strongest  banks  throughout  the  world.  In 
many  cases,  these  correspondents  include  the 
governmental  institutions  of  their  respective 
countries.  Thus  its  customers  are  afforded  the 
facilities  of  the  best  native  connections  wherever 
they  seek  business,  with  an  intimate  knowledge 
of  local  conditions  which  it  is  so  difficult  for 
any  foreign  competitive  bank  to  acquire.  Sup- 
plementing its  correspondent  connections,  the 
bank  also  maintains  resident  and  traveling 
representatives  in  centers  where  their  personal 
efforts  will  enable  it  to  be  of  fuller  service  to  its 
customers,  while  by  means  of  extensive  travel, 
its  officers  keep  in  close  .  personal  touch  with 
affairs  abroad.  An  office  is  established  in  Lon- 
don to  facilitate  relations  with  connections 
abroad  and  to  cooperate  with  the  bank's  custo- 
mers in  foreign  transactions.  It  is  also  equipped 
to  gather  information  on  commercial,  economic 
and  other  conditions  in  Europe  bearing  on 


Page  Thirty-two 


Great 


A  m  e  r  i  c  a  n 


Bank 


business.     Similar    offices    are    maintained    in 
Copenhagen   and   Amsterdam. 

It  is  the  policy  of  the  bank  to  adopt  for  the 
service  of  American  exporters  and  importers 
those  methods  which  seem  best  fitted  to  meet 
the  particular  requirements  of  each  country. 
The  organization  of  the  French  American  Bank- 
ing Corporation  by  the  National  Bank  of  Com- 
merce in  New  York,  with  the  First  National 
Bank  of  Boston  and  the  Comptoir  National 
d'Escompte  de  Paris,  has  been  one  of  the  means 
of  giving  expression  to  this  policy.  This  or- 
ganization, created  with  the  definite  purpose  of 
encouraging  trade  relations  between  France  and 
the  United  States,  puts  directly  at  the  disposal 
of  American  business  men  the  services  and  con- 
nections of  experienced  French  bankers. 


Through  the  For- 
eign Mail  Division 
— a  section  of  the 
bank's  large  For- 
eign Department — 
instruments  of 
credit  go  to  all 
parts  of  the  world. 


Page  Thirty-three 


Great  American  Bank 


Financing  Foreign  Trade 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  is  particularly  interested  in  the  problems 
of  American  foreign  commerce  because  it  realizes 
the  vital  importance  of  foreign  trade  in  the 
future  commercial  development  of  the  United 
States.  The  business  of  the  Foreign  Depart- 
ment is  fundamentally  that  of  lending  the  bank's 
credit  to  finance  the  flow  of  goods  between  this 
and  foreign  countries.  It  does  this  by  nego- 
tiating prime  bills  of  exchange  drawn  by  banks 
and  commercial  concerns.  It  also  does  this  by 
the  use  of  its  acceptances,  through  which  the 
bank  substitutes  its  own  credit  for  its  customer's 
credit  by  agreeing  to  accept  for  him  drafts  drawn 
in  connection  with  commercial  transactions. 
This  method  of  lending  credit  has  steadily  in- 
creased in  favor  with  the  American  business 
world  since  its  authorization  six  years  ago 
by  the  Federal  Reserve  Act. 

Establishing  Relations 

The  Foreign  Department  offers  to  its  cus- 
tomers superior  service  for  all  the  various  types 
of  international  financial  operations.  In  order 
that  an  exporter  or  importer  may  be  able  to 


Page  Thirty-four 


Great  American  Bank 


avail  himself  fully  of  these  facilities  it  is  not 
necessary  for  him  to  be  a  customer  of  the  Na- 
tional Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York  for 
general  banking  purposes.  Many  concerns  in 
the  interior  which  do  their  general  banking  in  the 
cities  in  which  they  are  located  establish  connec- 
tions with  the  Foreign  Department  to  facilitate 
the  transaction  of  their  foreign  business. 

Domestic  Credit  Ratings 

The  business  of  lending  credit  must  be  founded 
on  accurate  information.  The  Credit  Depart- 
ment of  the  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in 
New  York  has  in  its  files  data  on  a  vast  number 
of  different  enterprises.  Information  on  addi- 
tional firms  is  being  secured  daily,  and  all  files 
are  in  continuous  process  of  revision,  in  order 
to  keep  them  up  to  date.  All  financial  state- 
ments are  analyzed  by  experts.  A  staff  of  experi- 
enced investigators  is  maintained,  not  only  to 
secure  routine  credit  information,  but  to  make 
special  investigations  and  to  keep  closely  in 
touch  with  conditions  in  the  various  lines  of 
business.  The  information  secured  by  the 
bank's  credit  investigators  is  supplemented  by 
that  received  from  correspondents  and  from 
reports,  not  only  by  the  leading  commercial 


Page  Thirty- five 


Great 


American 


Bank 


agencies,  but  by  various  special  agencies 
as  well. 

The  Credit  Department  furnishes  the  bank's 
friends  with  credit  information  on  names  sub- 
mitted, and  is  equipped,  on  short  notice,  to 
supply  lists  of  reliable  firms  in  any  given  line  of 
business.  It  advises  as  to  the  merits  of  offerings 
of  commercial  paper,  and  when  requested  pur- 
chases commercial  paper  for  its  correspondents, 
furnishing  them  with  complete  information  on 
each  name  purchased,  including  financial  state- 
ments. It  is  prepared  to  make  special  investi- 
gations for  its  correspondents  on  behalf  of  their 
depositors.  This  service  is  being  made  use  of 
to  an  increasing  extent  by  customers  from  whom 
the  Credit  Department  receives  frequent  testi- 
monials 
as  to  its 
value. 


Business  facts  relat- 
ing to  men  and  insfa 
tutions  comprising  the 
commercial,  industrial 
and  financial  life  of 
the  nation  are  avail- 
able in  the  credit  files 
of  the  National  Bank 
of  Commerce  in  New 
York. 


Page  Thirty-six 


Great  American  Bank 


Foreign  Credit  Information 

The  problem  of  securing  foreign  credit  infor- 
mation does  not  differ  in  principle  from  that  of 
getting  reliable  credit  information  concerning 
domestic  enterprises.  At  the  same  time,  cer- 
tain differences  in  business  customs  and  prac- 
tices make  necessary  modifications  in  working 
methods.  The  American  system  of  credit  rat- 
ings is  unknown  in  many  foreign  countries. 
In  a  commercial  and  financial  sense,  the  United 
States  is  young,  while  in  many  parts  of  the 
world,  especially  in  Europe,  many  houses  now 
in  business  are  older  than  our  history  as  a 
nation.  Social  relationships  also  play  a  more 
important  part  abroad  than  they  do  in  this 
country.  As  a  result  of  these  differences,  opin- 
ion as  to  the  standing  of  a  firm,  as  contrasted 
with  the  actual  facts  of  its  position,  becomes  a 
matter  of  major  importance  in  connection  with 
foreign  credits.  The  National  Bank  of  Com- 
merce in  New  York  has  the  advantage  of  se- 
curing this  intimate  information  through  its 
connection  with  leading  native  banks  in  every 
commercial  center  of  the  world.  Where  the  in- 
formation desired  by  its  customers  is  not  on  file 
nor  easily  available  in  this  country,  the  bank 
obtains  it  through  its  foreign  connections.  It 


Page  Thirty-seven 


Great  American  Bank 


is  in  a  position  to  furnish  domestic  inquirers 
with  lists  of  responsible  concerns  interested  in 
particular  lines  in  foreign  countries,  and  simi- 
larly to  provide  foreign  inquirers  with  the  names 
of  reliable  business  interests  in  the  United  States. 
Such  facilities  for  foreign  credit  information  are 
especially  valuable  to  enterprises  which  are  en- 
deavoring to  build  up  new  markets.  The 
National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York  ex- 
tends its  services  not  only  to  its  customers  but 
to  all  business  interests  which  desire  to  utilize 
them. 

A  Source  of  Business  Information 

A  great  commercial  organization,  such  as  the 
National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York, 
whose  field  of  operations  includes  the  whole 
world  of  commerce,  must  constantly  adjust 
its  policies  and  its  position  to  allow  for  new 
conditions.  It  can  hardly  be  less  sensible  of 
the  current  events  in  Europe,  the  Far  East  or 
the  southern  hemisphere  than  of  conditions  in 
its  own  neighborhood.  Consequently,  such  an 
institution  seeks  in  every  way  to  enlarge  its 
contact  with  affairs  and  to  broaden  its  basis  of 
knowledge.  Such  a  bank,  because  of  this 
necessity  of  being  informed,  becomes  a  legiti- 


Page  Thirty-eight 


Great  American  Bank 


mate  and  valuable  source  to  which  its  customers 
may  reasonably  look  for  information  and 
guidance. 

Valuable  general  knowledge  comes  to  every 
department  of  the  bank.  In  order  to  correlate 
this  information  and  make  it  available  and  to 
provide  certain  special  facilities  the  need  of 
which  was  beginning  to  be  felt,  the  Service 
Department  was  established  in  1917.  Its  duty 
is  to  find  out  whatever  the  bank  or  its  friends 
may  need  to  know,  and  to  handle  problems 
which  fall  outside  usual  banking  operations. 
Its  services  include  furnishing  information  on 
all  kinds  of  commodities.  It  is  interested  in 
the  broad  problems  of  labor  and  immigration — 
it  can  assist  also  in  the  matter  of  getting  a 
passport.  It  has  helped  many  of  the  bank's 
friends  in  the  solution  of  their  income  tax 
difficulties.  It  also  makes  careful  studies  of 
those  questions  of  governmental  finance  and 
taxation  which  now  confront  the  United  States. 

Commercial  Research  in  Relation  to 
Modern  Business 

The  desire  of  every  business  man  is  to  base 
his  operations  on  fact,  rather  than  on  con- 
jecture. As  a  part  of  its  Service  Department 


Page  Thirty-nine 


Great 


A  m  e  r  i  c  a  n 


Bank 


the  bank  established  a  library  and  initiated  the 
policy  of  employing  expert  assistants  for  eco- 
nomic and  statistical  research.  The  accuracy  of 
its  foresight  has  been  proved,  for  the  bank's 
library  now  has  the  aspect  of  a  busy  workshop. 
So  great  has  been  the  need  of  scientific  com- 
mercial research  during  the  post-war  period 
that  only  with  difficulty  have  facilities  been 
expanded  rapidly  enough  to  meet  the  demands 
of  the  bank  and  its  customers.  A  close  contact 
is  maintained  with  the  course  of  state  and 
national  legislative  developments  which  have  a 
bearing  on  business  affairs.  An  office  is  main- 
tained in  Washington  in  order  to  secure  first 
hand  information  as  to  Federal  legislation  and 


The  Library  is  a 
section  of  the  Ser- 
vice Department. 
This  department 
gathers  and  makes 
available  facts  of 
industry,  c  am  - 
merce  and  finance. 


Page  Forty 


Great  American  Bank 


administrative  measures  affecting  business.  The 
various  research  bureaus  of  the  Government  are 
an  invaluable  source  of  economic  and  technical 
information,  and  the  bank's  Washington  office 
makes  this  quickly  available  both  for  its  own 
use  and  for  the  use  of  its  customers. 

Foreign  Trade  Information 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  is  equipped  to  furnish  advice  and  infor- 
mation on  many  phases  of  foreign  trade  more 
adequately  than  individual  concerns  can  pro- 
vide it  for  themselves.  Much  can  be  learned 
about  foreign  market  possibilities  and  com- 
petitive conditions  by  the  careful  analysis  of  the 
trade  of  foreign  nations  and  of  the  United 
States.  Such  utilization  of  production  and 
trade  statistics  has  long  been  the  custom  in 
European  countries.  Waste  motion  can  be 
eliminated  and  money  saved  by  restricting 
marketing  efforts  to  areas  shown  by  statistical 
and  economic  research  to  be  worth  while. 
Many  costly  blunders  made  in  the  past  by  Amer- 
ican exporters  could  have  been  entirely  avoided 
by  the  intelligent  use  of  available  material. 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  is  constantly  making  for  itself  and  its 


Page  Forty-one 


Great  American  Bank 


customers  statistical  and  economic  investiga- 
tions of  conditions  surrounding  foreign  markets. 
Its  library  is  a  storehouse  of  information  on 
foreign  trade.  It  utilizes  both  governmental 
and  trade  sources.  If  the  desired  information 
is  not  available  in  the  United  States,  it  is 
secured  abroad. 

It  is  important  that  a  mutual  understanding 
be  had  of  the  necessary  limitations  in  this  form 
of  cooperation,  however.  Beyond  a  certain 
point  a  bank  is  not  and  cannot  be  equipped  to 
give  advice.  It  cannot  undertake  to  determine 
the  probable  ability  of  a  firm  to  engage  in 
foreign  trade  with  profit,  and  it  cannot  assume 
to  advise  respecting  the  technical  conduct  or 
the  detailed  policies  of  its  customers'  enter- 
prises. In  other  words,  it  cannot  supply 
trading  skill  and  judgment.  The  bank  does, 
however,  furnish  to  its  customers  accurate 
facts  which  should  serve  them  as  a  basis  for 
appraising  the  larger  aspects  of  their  individual 
problems.  In  addition  to  such  economic  and 
statistical  advice,  the  bank  is  equipped  to  give 
full  and  specific  information  as  to  technical 
details  of  exporting  and  procedure  governing 
bills  of  lading,  insurance  and  foreign  tariff 
requirements. 


Page  Forty-two 


Great  American  Bank 


Publications 

The  bank  has  established  the  policy  of 
publishing  in  readily  usable  form  such  important 
laws  as  the  Federal  Revenue  Act  and  the 
Federal  Reserve  Act,  and  of  keeping  these 
publications  up  to  date  by  revision.  It  also 
publishes  Commerce  Monthly,  a  commercial 
and  financial  magazine,  the  purpose  of  which  is 
to  make  available  to  its  customers  and  friends 
the  results  of  its  research  and  experience,  and 
its  judgment  of  general  business  affairs  and 
financial  conditions. 

Investments  and  the  Care  of  Securities 
While  its  banking  business  is  commercial  in 
character,  the  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in 
New  York  has  as  a  matter  of  long-standing 
policy  provided  for  its  customers  all  the  varied 
financial  services  necessary  to  satisfy  their 
requirements.  Customers  in  the  interior  of 
the  country  and  in  New  York  City  have  found 
the  services  of  the  bank,  in  the  heart  of  the 
country's  investment  market,  of  particular 
value  in  guiding  their  investments  and  in  caring 
for  their  securities.  Such  activities  of  the  bank 
are  centered  in  its  Bond,  Transfer  and  Coupon 
Departments. 


Page  Forty-three 


Great  American  Bank 


Investment  Advice 

The  Bond  Department  specializes  in  the 
buying  and  selling  of  listed  or  unlisted  securities 
for  the  bank's  customers.  It  is  not  interested 
in  promoting  the  sale  of  any  particular  offering, 
and  is  absolutely  free  in  its  contacts  with  the 
investment  market.  Its  efforts  are  devoted 
entirely  to  the  service  of  the  best  interests  of 
its  customers.  It  gives  counsel  to  them  in 
security  investment  and  places  at  their  disposal 
expert  advice  and  the  benefit  of  its  own  great 
fund  of  information  built  up  by  many  years  of 
experience  and  close  statistical  studies  of  thou- 
sands of  corporations. 

It  performs  this  service  not  only  in  connec- 
tion with  the  New  York  security  market;  it  is 
also  in  a  position,  through  extensive  wire  con- 
nections, to  gather  prompt  information  and  to 
arrange  the  expeditious  execution  of  orders  in 
other  financial  centers  throughout  the  country; 
while  its  far-reaching  foreign  correspondent 
relations  and  cable  facilities  enable  it  to  handle 
a  similar  service  in  respect  to  foreign  securities. 

All  orders  of  customers  are  promptly  executed 
and  their  holdings  may  be  left  on  special  deposit 
for  safekeeping  in  the  bank's  vaults,  and  in 


Page  Forty-four 


Great  American  Bank 


case  of  registered  securities  may  be  held  for 
greater  convenience  in  transferring  in  the  name 
of  the  bank's  nominees.  Dividends,  coupons 
and  maturing  obligations  are  collected  and 
credited  to  their  owners,  and  ownership  cer- 
tificates required  under  the  Federal  income 
tax  law  are  executed  through  the  department 
by  the  bank  as  agent  under  the  owners'  instruc- 
tions. A  large  business  is  also  done  in  accepting 
and  delivering  securities  for  the  account  of  our 
customers.  This  is  efficiently  handled  under 
special  safeguards.  Customers  are  fully  in- 
formed respecting  rights  of  conversion,  reorgan- 
ization plans  and  other  matters  of  interest  to 
them.  All  of  these  services  are  rendered 
regardless  of  whether  the  bank  has  any  direct 
interest  in  the  particular  security  involved,  the 
aim  being  to  facilitate  the  customer's  interest. 

Fiscal  Agent 

The  Transfer  Department  performs  a  fiscal 
service  for  municipal  and  business  corporations. 
It  acts  as  a  transfer  agent  and  a  registrar  of 
stocks  and  bonds;  it  pays  interest  coupons, 
handles  the  disbursement  of  dividends  and 
serves  in  other  ways  as  a  fiscal  agent  for  cor- 
porations, municipalities  and  governments. 


Page  Forty-live 


Great 


A  m  e  r  i  c  a  n 


Bank 


Proper  discharge  of  the  exacting  details  of  such 
business  requires  a  fiscal  agent  in  whom  the 
corporation  or  municipality  can  place  implicit 
confidence.  For  the  last  half  century  hundreds 
of  corporations  and  municipalities  have  availed 
themselves  of  the  careful  and  experienced  serv- 
ices of  the  Transfer  Department  of  the  National 
Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York. 

Coupons 

Practically  all  domestic  corporations  as  well 
as  numerous  foreign  corporations  and  govern- 
ments which  have  considerable  indebtedness 
outstanding  in  the  United  States,  maintain 

treasurers'   offices 
or   paying 
agencies   in 
New  York 


A  section  of  the  Book- 
keeping Department, 
where  machines  are  used 
to  prepare  customers' 
statements.  Throughout 
the  bank  the  transaction 
of  business  is  facilitated 
by  modern  mechanical 
equipment. 


Page  Forty-six 


Great  American  Bank 


for  the  payment  of  dividends  on  stocks  and 
interest  coupons  on  bonds.  Through  New  York, 
moreover,  are  collected  such  foreign  interest 
items  as  are  not  payable  at  agencies  within  the 
United  States. 

The  wide  connections  of  the  National  Bank 
of  Commerce  in  New  York  throughout  all 
sections  of  the  United  States,  and  its  intimate 
relations  with  the  leading  banking  institutions 
of  foreign  countries,  have  made  it  one  of  the 
largest  coupon-collecting  agencies  in  the  United 
States.  Its  Coupon  Department  receives  cou- 
pons either  for  immediate  credit  subject  to  final 
payment,  or  for  collection,  and  is  fully  equipped 
to  handle  this  business  with  a  maximum  of  care 
and  speed.  The  exacting  requirements  of  the 
Federal  income  tax  law,  with  respect  to 
ownership  certificates  required  to  be  attached 
to  coupons  when  presented  for  collection,  make 
the  careful  service  which  this  department  of 
the  bank  renders  of  great  value  to  its  friends. 

Equipment  and  Resources 

The  foregoing  pages  have  described  a  few  of 
the  departments  and  functions  of  the  National 
Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York  of  particular  in- 
terest to  customers  because  of  the  direct  service 


Page  Forty-seven 


Great  American  Bank 


they  render,  but  they  by  no  means  exhaust  the 
organization  of  the  bank.  The  activities  of 
more  than  forty  separate  departments  are 
required  to  care  for  the  tremendous  volume  of 
the  institution's  daily  business.  Merely  to 
handle  the  movement  of  currency,  checks, 
notes  and  drafts  which  flow  in  and  out  of  the 
bank  over  its  counter,  through  the  Clearing 
House,  and  by  mail  and  express,  six  different 
tellers'  departments  are  required,  while  its 
total  personnel  numbers  more  than  a  thousand 
officers  and  employes,  occupying  several  floors 
in  two  large  adjoining  and  interconnected  office 
buildings. 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New 
York  has  grown  step  by  step  with  the  develop- 
ment of  the  United  States.  Established  to 
meet  the  financial  needs  of  the  America  of 
eighty  years  ago,  with  its  17,000,000  people, 
it  has  steadily  developed  until,  with  resources 
of  approximately  $500,000,000,  it  is  equipped  to 
meet  the  needs  of  the  greater  America  of  today, 
with  its  more  than  105,000,000  people,  its 
vigorous  and  varied  business  life  and  its  far- 
reaching  world  commerce. 

The  bank  offers  to  its  customers  the  strength 
and  reliance  of  its  great  financial  resources. 


Page  Forty-eight 


Great  American  Bank 


It  brings  to  the  solution  of  their  problems  a 
long  and  varied  practical  experience,  and  it 
offers  to  them  all  the  services  which  the  develop- 
ment of  commerce  and  of  industry  have  brought 
within  the  scope  of  the  most  modern  commercial 
banking.  Underlying  this  service  there  is 
maintained  to  an  unusual  degree  an  intimate 
and  understanding  personal  relation. 

The  National  Bank  of  Commerce  in  New  York 
is  an  institution  which  merits  the  thoughtful  con- 
sideration of  business  men. 


Pagt    Forty-Hint 


OFFICERS 


President 

JAMES    S.    ALEXANDER 


Vice-Presidents 


J.   HOWARD   ARDREY 
JOSEPH  A.    BRODERICK 
GUY    EMERSON 
HERBERT   P.   IIOWELL 
LOUIS  A.  KEIDEL 


DAVID   H.   G.   PENNY 
JOHN   E.   ROVENSKY 
FARIS    R.    RUSSELL 
STEVENSON   E.   WARD 
ROGER  H.   WILLIAMS 


Second  Vice-Presidents 


HARRY  P.   BARRAND 
LOUIS    P.    CHRISTENSON 
JAMES  I.    CLARKE 
ARCHIBALD  F.  MAXWELL 


FRANZ   MEYER 
EDWARD   H.  RAWLS 
EVERETT   E.   RISLEY 
HENRY  C.   STEVENS 


Cashier 

ROY  H.   PASSMORE 


Auditor 
ALBERT    EMERTON 


Assistant  Cashiers 


IRA    W.   ALDOM 
EMANUEL   C.    GERSTEN 
GASTON  L.  GHEGAN 
W.   SPROULL  GRAVES 
ELMORE    F.    HIGGINS 
JOHN  J.   KEENAN 
WALTER   E.   LOVBLAD 
DON    L.    MOORE 


ALFRED  J.  OXENHAM 
JULIUS    PAUL 
EUGENE    M.    PRENTICE 
HENRY   W.    SCHRADER 
EDWARD  A.  SCHROEDER 
HAMILTON  G.   STENERSEN 
EDWARD   VANDERPOEL 
JOHN  T.  WALKER,  Jr. 


WILLIAM  C.  HENCHY,  Manager  Credit  Department 
WILLIAM  T.  SHEEHAN,  Manager  Foreign  Department 
ROWLAND  R.  McELVARE    Manager  Service  Department 


DIRECTORS 


JAMES   S.  ALEXANDER 
JOHN    W.    DAVIS 
WILLIAM  A.  DAY 
HENRY    W.    de    FOREST 
FORREST    F.    DRYDEN 
CHARLES   E.   DUNLAP 
HERBERT    P.    HOWELL 
VALENTINE   P.    SNYDER 
HARRY    B.    THAYER 
JAMES  TIMPSON 
THOMAS    WILLIAMS 


FIRST  ANNUAL   STATEMENT 
May  13,  1839 

RESOURCES 

Loans  and  Discounts $1,070,504.93 

Bonds  and  Securities 200,000.00 

Cash,    Exchanges,    etc 352,868.69 

Due   from   Banks  and  Bankers ,          411,509.48 


$2,034,883.10 

LIABILITIES 

Capital  and  Undivided  Profits $1,203,490.73 

Deposits    831,392.37 


$2,034,883.10 


STATEMENT  OF  CONDITION 
May  8,  1865 

RESOURCES 

Loans  and  Discounts $3,020,935.94 

Bonds  and  Securities 12,954,250.00 

Banking   House   300,000.00 

Cash,   Exchanges,   etc 8,668,695.08 

Due  from  Banks  and  Bankers 313,837.54 

Interest  Accrued 195,620.00 


$25.453,338.56 


LIABILITIES 


Capital,  Surplus  and  Undivided  Profits $12,836,562.71 

Deposits    12,615,070.85 

State   Bank   Notes   Outstanding 1,705.00 


$25,453,338.56 


STATEMENT  OF  CONDITION 
June  29,  1900 

RESOURCES 

Loans  and  Discounts $47,302,738.72 

Bonds  and  Securities 13,656,640.71 

U.  S.  Government  Securities  Borrowed 50,000.00 

Banking  House    2,280,700.00 

Cash,  Exchanges,  etc 21,402,016.76 

Due  from  Banks  and  Bankers 4,248,074.81 


$88,940,171.00 

LIABILITIES 

Capital,  Surplus  and  Undivided  Profits $17,029,293.00 

Deposits    65,423,628.00 

Circulation   6,437,250.00 

U.  S.  Government  Securities  Borrowed 50,000.00 


$88,940,171.00 


STATEMENT  OF  CONDITION 
June  30,  1921 

RESOURCES 
Loans  and  Discounts  .............................................................................................  $291,204,674.06 

Bonds  and  Securities  .............................................................................................  33,306,290.04 

U.  S.  Government  Securities  Borrowed  ..........................................  2,500,000.00 

Banking  House  ............................................................................................................  4,000,000.00 

Cash,    Exchanges,    and    due    from    Federal    Reserve 

Bank  ..............................................................................................................................  119,915,666.38 

Due  from  Banks  and  Bankers  ..................................................................  5,956,932.27 

Interest  Accrued  .........................................................................................................  843,901.41 

Customers'    Liability    under    Letters    of    Credit    and 

Acceptances  ...                               .....................................................  29,858,333.80 


$487,585,797.96 

LIABILITIES 

Capital,  Surplus  and  Undivided  Profits  .........................  $5949481597 

Deposits    ...............................................................................................................................  386,379,208.60 

U.  S.  Government  Securities  Borrowed  ..........................................  2,500,000.00 

Reserved  for  Interest  and  Taxes  Accrued  ....................................  3,879,634.36 

Dividend  Payable  July  1,  1921  .....................................................................  750[000!00 

Unearned  Discount  ................................................................................................  2,093i033'56 

Letters  of  Credit  and  Acceptances  ......................................................  30,789,10547 

Other  Liabilities  .........................................................................................................  1,700,00000 


$487,585,797.96 


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